Gate latch pull cable

ABSTRACT

One embodiment of an improved gate latch pull cable of the type being made of metal for durability and having a one-piece clevis clip secured to one end for easy attachment to a gate latch, and a pull loop secured with a cable sleeve on the other end for securely grasping the cable. The clevis clip incorporates an integral clevis pin eliminating loose parts, and a fillet transition to the cable to prevent it from catching on edges. Surrounding the cable is a tapered return-spring which assists in gate latch closure, and a spring cup which fits in a gate post hole for centering the large diameter of the spring over the hole. The small diameter of the spring is proximal to the clevis clip, and lightly pushes against a gate latch cam. The tapered spring coils fit inside each other when compressed allowing the gate latch to fully open.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. provisional patentapplication Ser. No. 61/170,770 filed Apr. 20, 2009 by the presentinventor.

BACKGROUND Prior Art

The following is a tabulation of some prior art that presently appearsrelevant:

U.S. Patents Pat. No. Kind Code Issue Dates Patentee 3,266,831 Aug. 16,1966 Banse 3,433,518 Mar. 18, 1969 Foltz 5,078,438 Jan. 07, 1992Bieganski 5,358,292 Oct. 25, 1994 Van Wiebe et al. 5,498,041 Mar. 12,1996 Bezzerides et al. 6,170,892 B1 Jan. 09, 2001 Lantiegne

Gravity style gate latches are among the most commonly used residentialgate latches. They are also referred to as automatic gate latches. Theylatch automatically when a gate is closed and hold the gate in theclosed position. Closing the gate causes the latch mechanism to rise.Gravity then pulls it down, latching the gate closed.

Originally automatic gate latches were intended to be opened from theopposite side of the gate with a string. For example, U.S. Pat. No.3,433,518 to R. E. Foltz (1969) shows the use of a string to open thelatch. Due to the constant exposure to the outdoor elements, the stringdeteriorates, weakens and breaks. Sometimes gate latches stick or bind,requiring more pulling force to open than a string can offer. This makesopening a gate unreliable. Once the string is broken the gate can onlybe opened by reaching over to unlatch it or going around the house toopen it from the back side. If the gate is tall or the person is short,reaching over the gate may not be an option. In addition, the string islimited to a pulling force and cannot provide any pushing assistance toensure a positive closure. If the gate is slammed closed the latchmechanism cannot act quickly enough to make a positive latch and thegate bounces open.

Despite many attempts to create a better device to open automatic gatelatches from the opposite side, the string remains the standard and byfar the most commonly used device.

As can be seen, there is a need for a gate latch pull cable that isstronger, more durable and more reliable. To compete with a string italso needs to be inexpensive, easy to install and easy to use. To offermore value and security it needs to assist in positive latching.

Several types of gate latch pull cables have been proposed: U.S. Pat.No. 5,358,292 to Van Wiebe et al. (1994) is a gate latch pull whichrequires a significant amount of tooling to manufacture all of theplastic components. This increases the manufacturing cost andcomplexity, making it difficult to compete with a string. It is made ofplastic, which will deteriorate in constant exposure to sunlight. Thismakes it prone to breakage and unreliable. It pulls up on the gatelatching mechanism rather than pulling straight back, making it harderto pull and harder to open the latch fully. In addition, the springpressure is too strong and causes the gate to bounce back open if thegate is not closed hard enough. This design is an attempt to solve thepositive latching problem, but actually makes it worse because of theexcessive spring pressure. Furthermore the spring and cable pull used inhis design bunches up in one embodiment and bends more than 90 degreesin another. Both of these designs require excessive pull force resultingin an inconsistent latch mechanism release and in some cases a brokenplastic cable.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,170,892 to Lantiegne (2001) does not offer the strength,durability, reliability or automatic positive latching capabilities. Itis not designed for a significant pull force if the gate latch is stuckor binding. With a significant pull force, Lantiegnes' cable pull willslide off of the latch mechanism. Even with UV additives, plasticeventually breaks down in sunlight and overtime the gate latch pull willweaken and break. The other attachment methods in his patent are alsoprone to breaking with constant exposure to sunlight. Whether his gatelatch pull is made of plastic or metal it is still lacking an automaticspring force to assist in the positive closure of the gate latch. A gatelatch pull without a spring return acts as a dampener because of theadditional weight and friction. This additional drag slows down the gatelatch action and hinders positive gate latch closure if the gate isclosed quickly.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,498,041 to Bezzerides et al. (1996) requires a separatespring on the latch to assist with latch closure rather than having anindependent spring as part of the cable pull. This makes the cable pulldependent on the latch. If the automatic latch does not have areturn-spring the cable will not offer return assistance and will alsoact as a damper. Some of the gate latch pull parts in Bezzerides patentare very small, loose parts that are easy to drop and tedious toinstall. Additionally, Bezzerides patent shows a push pad on the gatelatch. If the gate latch does not have a push pad the sharp ends of thesmall gate latch pull parts will cause discomfort to the individualpushing the latch open. Stanley Co., one of the largest suppliers ofgate hardware, offers an automatic gate latch #SP-1101 that does nothave a push pad.

SUMMARY

In accordance with one embodiment a gate latch pull cable comprises acable having a pull loop at one end held in place with a cable sleeve, aclevis clip incorporating an integral attachment pin on the other end, atapered return-spring and a self aligning spring cup surrounding thecable at the clevis end.

ADVANTAGES

Accordingly several advantages of one or more aspects are as follows: toprovide a gate latch pull cable that is easy and affordable tomanufacture, that will allow a retail price point that is in-line withthe cost of the gate latch, that is easy to install, that is strong,durable and reliable, that will stand up to the elements, that assistsin positive gate latch closure, that eliminates gate latch bounce back,and is easy to pull. Other advantages of one or more aspects will beapparent from a consideration of the drawings and ensuing description.

DRAWINGS Figures

FIG. 1: is a perspective view of the invention 10.

FIG. 2: is a side view of the invention 10.

FIG. 3: is a front view of the invention 10.

FIG. 4: is a top view of the invention 10.

FIG. 5: is a side view of the invention 10.

FIG. 6: is a detail perspective view illustrating the clevis clip 16

FIG. 7 is a view of the tapered spring in an extended configuration.

FIG. 8 is a view of the tapered spring in a collapsed configuration.

DRAWINGS Reference Numerals

-   -   10 overall invention    -   12 gate latch assembly    -   14 gate latch cam    -   16 clevis clip        -   16 a filet        -   16 b barrel        -   16 c flat side        -   16 d clevis pin        -   16 e opposing flat side        -   16 f hole    -   18 tapered return-spring    -   20 spring cup    -   22 cable    -   24 cable sleeve    -   26 pull loop    -   28 gate post    -   30 gate    -   32 gate latch bar

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The following detailed description is my present contemplated mode ofcarrying out an exemplary embodiment of the invention. The descriptionis not to be taken in a limiting sense, but is made for the purpose ofillustrating the general principles of the invention, since the scope ofthe invention is best defined by the appended claims.

I presently contemplate for this embodiment an elongated cable 22 thatpasses through a hole in a gate post 28. The cable comprises a pull loop26 at a first end which is secured with a cable sleeve 24. A clevis clip16 is secured at the second end. The clevis clip comprises a fillet 16a, a barrel 16 b, a flat side 16 c and a clevis pin 16 d which isaffixed to the flat side 16 c. An opposing flat side 16 e has a hole 16f to receive the clevis pin 16 d. The clevis clip 16 is attached to agate latch cam 14 which pivots inside a gate latch assembly 12 andlatches on to a latch bar 32 which is attached to a gate 30. A taperedreturn-spring 18 surrounds the cable 22 and is situated proximal to thegate latch assembly 12. The larger diameter of the tapered return-spring18 rests in a spring cup 20 which surrounds the cable 22 and is situatedin the hole in the gate latch post 28. The smaller diameter of thetapered return-spring 18 presses against the gate latch cam 14.

Operation—Referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8.

An exemplary embodiment may be made and used according to the followingdescription.

The present invention provides a mechanism to open the gate latch fromthe outside of the gate. The pull loop 26 in cable 22 is grasped andpulled back which pulls on the clevis clip 16 compressing the taperedreturn-spring 18 and opening the gate latch cam 14 fully so the gatelatch bar 32 attached to gate 30 can be released and gate 30 is opened.Once the gate 30 is opened, the pull loop 26 is released and the taperedreturn-spring 18 assists the gate latch cam 14 to return to the closedposition. Next, the gate 30 is closed and the gate latch bar 32 pushesthe gate latch cam 14 up and against the light force of the taperedreturn-spring 18 and then the tapered return-spring 18 pushes back andassists the closure of the gate latch cam 14 which captures the gatelatch bar 32, securing the gate 30 closed.

Cable 22: The gate latch pull cable 22 may be approximately 14″ long, ismade of multiple strand, flexible, 1/16″ inch in diameter, stainlesssteel cable. The cable has a pull loop 26 on one end for grasping it.The cable 22 may be 304 stainless steel, 7×7 stranded wire available atWest Coast Wire and Rigging, 597 85th Ave., Oakland, Calif. 94621. Thecable may be cut to the desired length using a Felco cutter, modelnumber C-7 available from Lexco Cable Mfg., 7320 West Agatite Ave.,Norridge, Ill. 60706.

Pull Loop 26: The pull loop 26 in the cable may be approximately 2″ longand held in place by crimping the cable sleeve 24 onto the cable. Thepull loop 26 can be formed by hand and the cable sleeve 24 is slid overthe cable and may be crimped with a standard cable crimping tool number1-3-SBHS, available from Lexco Cable Mfg., 7320 West Agatite Ave.,Norridge, Ill. 60706.

Cable sleeve 24: The cable sleeve 24 may be made from copper and crimpedonto the cable 22 to hold the pull loop 26 in place. The cable sleeve 24is a standard product #S-10-001 available from US Rigging, 4001 W.Carriage Dr. Santa Ana, Calif. 92704.

Clevis Clip 16: The clevis clip 16 is small enough to fit through a ¼″diameter hole in the gate post and a ¼″ hole in the spring cup. It maybe hardened, high carbon steel or stainless steel which may be silversoldered onto the end of the cable 22 opposite the pull loop 26.Stay-Brite silver solder #SB11 may be used in conjunction withStay-Clean soldering flux #40004 which are both available from J.W.Harris Co., Inc., Mason, Ohio 45040. The clevis clip is soldered to thecable by sliding the barrel 16 b of the clevis clip 16 over the cable22. The soldering flux is applied where the cable 22 meets the clevisclip 16. Heat is applied, with a small butane torch such as theBernz-o-matic #019133ST2200T, to the same area until the flux starts tobubble then the solder is dabbed on until it melts and wicks up into thebarrel 16 b of the clevis clip 16. After the solder is cooled with a fewdrops of distilled water, flux and heat are applied again and anotherdab of solder is applied to create a fillet 16 a between the cable 22and end of the barrel 16 b on the clevis clip 16. To attach the clevisclip 16 to the gate latch cam 14, the flat side 16 c and the opposingflat side 16 e of the clevis clip 16 are spread apart and the clevis pin16 d is lined up over the hole in the gate latch cam 14 and releasedcausing the pin to go through the hole in the gate latch cam 14 andthrough the hole in the opposing flat side 16 e of the clevis clip 16attaching it securely to the gate latch cam 14. The clevis clip 16 is astandard product. It is part number 112. It is called a 2-56 solderkwik-link available from Du-Bro Products, 480 Bonner Rd., Waconda, Ill.,60084. It is made by forming sheet metal with dies. Once the clevis clip16 has been formed it is heat treated for strength and then plated withNickel.

Tapered return-spring 18: The tapered return-spring 18 may be made ofstainless steel. It is conically shaped so it can completely collapse onitself and not interfere with the gate latch cam 14 being pulled all theway open. When the tapered return-spring 18 is completely collapsed(see, e.g., FIG. 8), the coils of the spring fit inside of each otherand it can be compressed down to the thickness diameter of the springwire, which may be about 0.020″. FIG. 5, and more particularly FIG. 8,shows the tapered return-spring's 18 ability to fully compress while thecable 22 is pulled straight back, in direct alignment with theattachment hole in the gate latch cam 14 that the clevis clip 16attaches to. The tapered return-spring 18, in one example, is a customspring and can be made to specification by standard spring manufacturingtechniques by various spring manufacturing companies such as CenturySpring, 222 16^(th) St. Los Angles, Calif. 90015. Century Spring hasassigned this custom made tapered return-spring 18 part number SPC47333.

Spring Cup 20: The spring cup 20 is used to hold the large diameter ofthe tapered return-spring 18 so it stays centered over the hole in thegate post 28. The spring cup 20 may be made of mild steel, case hardenedto reduce friction and then plated with nickel to prevent rust. Thespring cup 20 may be manufactured on a lathe to specifications by amachine shop such as Edward Koehn Company Inc., 820 Folger Ave,Berkeley, Calif. 94706.

Advantages

From the description above, a number of advantages of one embodiment ofmy gate latch pull cable become evident:

-   -   (a) Easy and inexpensive to manufacture: The gate latch pull        cable is easy to make. It doesn't require extensive tooling. The        cable, cable sleeve and clevis clip are “off the shelf”        commercially available parts. Only the tapered return-spring and        the spring cup are custom parts and they can be made with        popular, standard manufacturing techniques. Because of this, the        gate latch pull cable can be made at a competitive and        reasonable price point.    -   (b) Strong, durable and reliable: All Steel construction makes        it strong, durable and reliable. It won't break down in sunlight        like a string or a plastic pull. If the gate latch binds, the        cable can be pulled hard without worry of breaking.    -   (c) Better security: The tapered return-spring provides a light        return force to the gate latch cam which ensures positive gate        latching and eliminates gate bounce back. It also allows the        gate latch cam to fully open because the tapered return-spring's        coils fit in-between each other and can completely collapse. A        regular coil compression spring does not have this capability        because the spring coils stack up on each other when compressed.        The completely collapsing tapered return-spring also allows the        pull force to be directly behind the gate latch cam attachment        hole. The direct alignment provides a consistently smooth and        even pull on the gate latch cam. The tapered return-spring is        strong enough to overcome the additional weight, dampening        effect and friction caused by adding a gate latch pull to the        gate latch cam but not strong enough to require the gate to be        slammed to overcome the spring force.    -   (d) Easy to install: The one piece Clevis Clip with the affixed,        integral clevis pin allows for a quick, easy, “no tools        required” attachment to the gate latch cam. It has no small        loose parts to drop or lose and it doesn't have any sharp parts,        like a clevis pin clip, to get cut on. Its compact size allows        for a small hole to be drilled in the gate post. Because it is        made of hardened, high carbon steel it is strong and will not        yield from a human pull force.

CONCLUSION, RAMIFICATIONS AND SCOPE

Accordingly, the reader will see that the gate latch pull cable can beused to replace the most commonly used devise which is an ordinarystring. The low cost to manufacture, the durability, the ease ofinstallation and the spring assisted closure make it an obvious choiceover a string. The fact that more than 15,000 gate latch cables of thisembodiment have been sold through 192 hardware stores during the term ofthe Provisional Patent are a clear testimonial to the need andacceptance of this design. The use of the tapered return-spring, theclip-on, one piece clevis and the all metal construction are the primaryattributors to the success of the 15,000 gate latch cable pulls thathave been sold.

I claim:
 1. A gate latch pull cable assembly, comprising: a metal cablewith a gate latch attachment device on one end thereof, said gate latchattachment device being in the form of a clevis clip; a grasping deviceon the other end of said metal cable; a tapered return-spring having afirst end with a larger diameter than a second end thereof, wherein saidtapered return-spring comprises a plurality of coils of spring wire thatare configured to collapse into a thickness of a single spring wirelayer thereof in response to pulling on said grasping device; and aspring cup that situates said first end of said tapered return-springover the center of a hole in a gate post, wherein said spring cup isconfigured to enclose said collapsed plurality of coils of spring wirein response to said grasping device being pulled.
 2. The gate latch pullcable assembly of claim 1, wherein said metal cable comprises amulti-stranded stainless steel cable whereby said metal cable isresistant to degradation from sunlight and rust.
 3. The gate latch pullcable assembly of claim 1, wherein said grasping device comprises a pullloop formed in said metal cable, wherein said pull loop is approximately2″ long and 1″ wide to enable a user to securely grasp said metal cable.4. The gate latch pull cable assembly of claim 3, wherein said graspingdevice comprises a cable sleeve constructed with copper and crimped tosecurely hold said pull loop.
 5. The gate latch pull cable assembly ofclaim 3, wherein said clevis clip is attached to said one end of saidmetal cable opposite said other end of said metal cable in which saidpull loop is formed, and wherein said clevis clip comprises an integralclevis pin small enough to pass through the hole in the gate post suchthat a user can clip said metal cable onto a gate latch cam withouttools or additional parts.
 6. The gate latch pull cable assembly ofclaim 1, wherein said clevis clip comprises a fillet with a barrel endof said clevis clip to provide a ramped transition from said metal cableto said clevis clip to prevent an edge of said barrel end of said clevisclip from catching on a spring coil, a sharp edge, or a spring cup hole.